Whether you are new to activism and want to test the waters or are a long-time change-maker seeking to broaden your network and dive deeper into the issues that concern you, Streams of Justice: KAIROS Atlantic Gathering will provide a forum to learn, connect and transform. Join us May 2-5 at Mount Allison University in Sackville, NB on the ancestral and unceded territory of the Mi’kmaq. Registration closes April 15! Spread the word!

Thank you for your calls, letters, posts and tweets urging the federal government to live up to its promise to create an effective and independent Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE). We are now convinced that the government is trying to delay the creation of a CORE with the power to compel documents and testimony until it is too late to do so during the current mandate. Call your MP today! Your continued action makes all the difference!

Your letters to senators on Bill C-262 (the UN Declaration Act) matter! To date 2,344 letters have been sent, and many senators are supportive of the Bill. A few are not. Several church representatives recently met with some of the senators and, based on what they learned, we have revised the online letter to urge that the Bill move to Committee to address concerns related to free, prior and informed consent. Please send an updated letter to the senators today and spread the word. We cannot thank you enough for your action on this Bill!

Connie Sorio, Migrant Justice Coordinator at KAIROS, shared her expertise on migrant justice in a recent episode of TVO’s Political Blind Date with MPs Jenny Kwan and Gary Anandasangaree. With many years of experience working closely with migrant workers on issues such as family reunification, permanent residency, and protection of human rights, Connie was able to provide key background information and context for the MPs’ discussion.

While Budget 2019 contains encouraging investments in Indigenous communities and the transition to a clean energy economy, it falls short in many other areas. What follows is an assessment of what Budget 2019 means for issues related to the KAIROS program areas of Indigenous rights, ecological justice, gender justice and migrant justice.

KAIROS kicked off International Women’s Day with its campaign, 8 Women, 8 Messages to highlight the voices of a few of the many courageous, creative and tenacious women we work with in Canada and around the world. For several days after March 8, KAIROS partner Agnes Petia, the Coordinator of the South Sudan Council of Churches National Women’s Programme, and Jane Thirikwa, KAIROS’ Global Partnerships Coordinator, joined thousands of women human rights defenders and activists from around the world at the UN Headquarters in New York for the Commission on Status of Women.

Cowessess First Nation, located 140 kilometres east of Regina, commissioned their latest renewable energy project in October 2018. Ready to show the immense power of two forms of renewable energy combined - solar and wind - the community has established an innovative project that has the potential to empower future generations.

As a community we offer a huge ‘Thank you’ to Janet Gray for six years of dedicated and creative service in the role of KAIROS British Columbia/Yukon Regional Representative.

Organización Femenina Popular (OFP)

A grassroots feminist organization founded in 1972, the OFP is one of the largest and most well-respected women’s networks in Colombia. Its programming is rooted in empowering women. Their casas de mujeres (women’s centers) offer psycho-social counselling, human rights training, and legal support to female survivors of violence. They also include community kitchens that provide affordable meals to impoverished women and their families. The organization supports female survivors of the war who seek reparations through Colombia’s Victims’ Law. A Women of Courage partner, the OFP is advancing its work thanks to funding from Global Affairs Canada and a matching fund through private donors like you.

Vancouver: No Passengers on Spaceship Earth: Stories of Resistance, Courage and Faith

BC-Yukon KAIROS Network Gathering.

April 26 - 27

Mount Pleasant Neighbourhood House (Friday evening). St. Anselm’s Anglican Church (Saturday).